Dragon Age: Origins

The combat is very up and down to be sure. One of the hilarious things for me is this little conundrum:-

Having kicked ass and beaten the main quest in the Mages tower including the big bad with his hoard of demons, as well as all the horrors of the fade. How come my party cannot remotely handle the one Revenant that appears when you try picking up the vial from a fallen statue. After the 5th attempt went south, I decided that it probably wasn't worth it, though perhaps I'll return when my ppls are uber levelled......stupidly difficult.
 
This game is a MAJOR time vampire.... Waaaaay too much dialogue. Like seriously, WTF, about double the dialogue of NWN2....and it's ALL spoken. Way to much time to complete quests / go anywhere / do anything / acomplish anything. I'm about to set the fights to easy, because I'm getting tired of pausing fights every 3 seconds to micromanage everyone.

I enjoy a game that lasts, more value for the money, but this is just a lot of time spent... without much feeling for action or accomplishment.

Psh, casual gamer.
 
The combat is very up and down to be sure. One of the hilarious things for me is this little conundrum:-

Having kicked ass and beaten the main quest in the Mages tower including the big bad with his hoard of demons, as well as all the horrors of the fade. How come my party cannot remotely handle the one Revenant that appears when you try picking up the vial from a fallen statue. After the 5th attempt went south, I decided that it probably wasn't worth it, though perhaps I'll return when my ppls are uber levelled......stupidly difficult.

Yeah, they're tough. Thats why they're my favorite enemy so far. **** all the demons and darkspawn pussies, the Revenant kicks your all all by himself. That said though, i've never actually lost my entire party to one. You suck.

And there is more than one. Its a whole quest line, in each major quest there is a spot with a phylactery that spawns them.
 
This game is a MAJOR time vampire.... Waaaaay too much dialogue. Like seriously, WTF, about double the dialogue of NWN2....and it's ALL spoken. Way to much time to complete quests / go anywhere / do anything / acomplish anything. I'm about to set the fights to easy, because I'm getting tired of pausing fights every 3 seconds to micromanage everyone.
I have no problem with the amount of dialogue (it's kind of welcomed, although I wish the player character did some talking), but the issue is that you basically can't undertake any branch of the main quest without stumbling upon a million other branches.
 
I hate that, chose the "wrong" option & all the sudden you're down 35 points with a party member. Happened once with allister (lost 10, then another 25 back at camp), and Sten just disapproves of everything.

P.S. Diplomacy is soooo vital in this game.
 
Learn how to read people. I've never lost more than a couple points at once with any character, and my main three dudes are all at 100%. You just gotta know what they want.

Also, that Orzammar boss fight, with the golems... HARDEST ****ING BOSS IVE EVER PLAYED.
 
Yeah, they're tough. Thats why they're my favorite enemy so far. **** all the demons and darkspawn pussies, the Revenant kicks your all all by himself. That said though, i've never actually lost my entire party to one. You suck.

And there is more than one. Its a whole quest line, in each major quest there is a spot with a phylactery that spawns them.

Well I don't play on easy ;)

I was using Wynne (healer), Moriggan (offensive magic), Alistair (tanking it) & myself (combat rogue). The main problem is, it's such close quarters & he has pretty good resistance against a lot of spells. I think I'll give my mages a couple more levels, and a few more spells and hopefully that should makle life easier.
 
Learn how to read people. I've never lost more than a couple points at once with any character, and my main three dudes are all at 100%. You just gotta know what they want.

Also, that Orzammar boss fight, with the golems... HARDEST ****ING BOSS IVE EVER PLAYED.

I thought he was easy, but then again I had lowered the difficulty to Casual by then because it's far too hard to micromanage your people on the console version!*Hides face in shame*
 
Getting my ass kicked beneath the mountains of stone. Goddamn tentacle monsters.
 
So is this gameplay more similar to Mass Effect or KOTOR?
 
So a few spoiler-ish questions for you guys:

Did you guys put the bloody bags of limbs and other body parts on that altar in the Deep Roads? If so, what did you do with the result?

Did you guys drink the blood of the dragon or save the ashes? I drank it and the next time I camped Wynne was a little bitch about it and left my party.

Have any of you put the Topsider together? If so, HOW?? :p
 
The combat is very up and down to be sure. One of the hilarious things for me is this little conundrum:-

Having kicked ass and beaten the main quest in the Mages tower including the big bad with his hoard of demons, as well as all the horrors of the fade. How come my party cannot remotely handle the one Revenant that appears when you try picking up the vial from a fallen statue. After the 5th attempt went south, I decided that it probably wasn't worth it, though perhaps I'll return when my ppls are uber levelled......stupidly difficult.

I just did this part last night. died twice but was able to take him down by the third try.

I filled the area with traps, threw globes at him while he was stuck and just whittled his health by stunning him often. Went through all my potions (I have the same party as you do, including my combat rogue) and now I'm having a hard time with some of the easier mobs. is there an end boss? cuz without potions I dont think I'll last long. I'm at the entrance to level 4 of the tower
 
I just did this part last night. died twice but was able to take him down by the third try.

I filled the area with traps, threw globes at him while he was stuck and just whittled his health by stunning him often. Went through all my potions (I have the same party as you do, including my combat rogue) and now I'm having a hard time with some of the easier mobs. is there an end boss? cuz without potions I dont think I'll last long. I'm at the entrance to level 4 of the tower

Good tactic. I hadn't thought much about traps tbh, as he doesn't move much, but good call. The fact that once you're in the tower you can't get out is a bit of a sod tbh.

There is a big bad yes, however if you use Moriggans Cone of Cold & Wynnes Stonefist in combo as well as have Wynne buff your fighters then you should be able to succeed. Principally its Magic Potions you need to keep the mages fuelled up.
 
Good tactic. I hadn't thought much about traps tbh, as he doesn't move much, but good call. The fact that once you're in the tower you can't get out is a bit of a sod tbh.

There is a big bad yes, however if you use Moriggans Cone of Cold & Wynnes Stonefist in combo as well as have Wynne buff your fighters then you should be able to succeed. Principally its Magic Potions you need to keep the mages fuelled up.

dammit I'm all out of lythium/lytherium/mana/whatever and I stupidly forgot to buy a ton of flasks to make more
 
So a few spoiler-ish questions for you guys:

Did you guys put the bloody bags of limbs and other body parts on that altar in the Deep Roads? If so, what did you do with the result?

Did you guys drink the blood of the dragon or save the ashes? I drank it and the next time I camped Wynne was a little bitch about it and left my party.

Have any of you put the Topsider together? If so, HOW?? :p

1. I did, I choose to slay the demon that is spawned from it, because I'm a good person!

2. Which dragon? I did not slay the dragon outside the Temple of Andastre if that's what you mean.

3. Topsider's was the quest where you found a humans armor pieces down in the Deep Roads right? If so, yes, but I don't remember how exactly, iirc the parts were spread over three different regions in the Deep Roads, and it ends with you having to fight a so-called "ANCIENT Darkspawn"(Basically a high-level darkspawn)

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.:(
 
dammit I'm all out of lythium/lytherium/mana/whatever and I stupidly forgot to buy a ton of flasks to make more

Your characters should be able to mainline the dust I believe assuming you have a stash. Though I imagine its not as potent as a potion.
 
1. I did, I choose to slay the demon that is spawned from it, because I'm a good person!
Hahaha! I let it go and I can't wait to see if it has repercussions further on...or maybe in the next game a la Mass Effect?? :)

2. Which dragon? I did not slay the dragon outside the Temple of Andastre if that's what you mean.
Yeah, that's the one. I called him down with that guy's horn and it DESTROYED my party utterly. Will have to level up. Can I call it in other places or battles I wonder?

3. Topsider's was the quest where you found a humans armor pieces down in the Deep Roads right? If so, yes, but I don't remember how exactly, iirc the parts were spread over three different regions in the Deep Roads, and it ends with you having to fight a so-called "ANCIENT Darkspawn"(Basically a high-level darkspawn)
Hmm, that sounds a little lame. I thought it was an uber-sword that Branka could put together for you or something. Will have to complete the quest and see. :)
See my answers above.
 
Okay, now on my "Do not get" list.

Mass Effect tried harder to be a third person shooter rather than an RPG, and even Dragon Age is quite different from KoTOR as Bioware did not use the d20 system at all, and came up with their own class system.
 
Mass Effect tried harder to be a third person shooter rather than an RPG, and even Dragon Age is quite different from KoTOR as Bioware did not use the d20 system at all, and came up with their own class system.

I would say don't compare it to other systems and buy it. It's the first RPG for me where Combat for Combat's sake is actually enjoyable.

I don't mind pausing, and directing my team's attacks, but does it involve clicking an enemy a number of times and then watching your character attack for you? Because I absolutely hate that shit.
 
Then the game obviously isn't for you.
This isn't Oblivion or Diablo, it's a tactics-based RPG.
 
Oh god. So glad I didn't buy.

This is a mistake.

It's more similar to KOTOR than Mass Effect yes. But KOTOR had a lot of times when you're just pressing power attack or flurry over and over again. Dragon Age definitely has a lot more depth to it. Especially when it comes to mages.
 
I don't mind pausing, and directing my team's attacks, but does it involve clicking an enemy a number of times and then watching your character attack for you? Because I absolutely hate that shit.

No; the combat is much more fluid than in KoTOR. While yes, basic attacks auto-fire for you, you need to manage stamina and use abilities wisely.

I never even really had to micromanaged anyone, and focused on my own character. I only screwed around when my main character would die and I'd have to seriously consider the tactics of my surviving team(usually REVIVE ME).

My DPS(y do i use these damned MMO terms) Warrior did >50% of the party's overall damage and had something like 800 kills at the end.

Addendum;

If you loved KoTOR you'll immediately be at home, but if you like faster games Bioware has at least made some attempt to appeal to that side of the RPG market as well.
 
Hmm, maybe I'll pick this up come Christmas. At first I didnt like the look of it, but I'm beginning to grow accustomed to it. Plus I loved KOTOR.
 
Does anyone else dislike the Brood Mother as much as I? Tried a few times last night and couldn't do it. Any particular strategies that worked for you guys? I know Cone of Cold is a big boon here, but anything else you guys find that is particularly effective?
 
For some twisted reason I restarted again, but stuck with the same Origin of female City Elf. This time going through the origin story I noticed that there existed the opportunity to approach some things in a slightly different manner: -

after you initially wake up in the Arls Castle and Soris & yourself battle the two guards, you find yourself in the Kitchens. If you walk into the main hall straight away 3 guards will attack you after a brief dialogue about being covered in blood and armed. However if you both change your clothes to your normal ware and put your weapons away then when you go into the room, the guards will assume you are elf servants and ask for some more drinks. In the kitchen & pantry you can find some rat poison & Brandy which you can serve to them and kill them easily. I'm pretty sure it netted me a lot more XP than straight up fighting as well. :naughty:

Sadly unfortunately after that part it seemed every guard was hostile, and you can't sneak & pickpocket in combat it seems...

There are a couple of rooms in the level which are locked and require keys, but so far I haven't been able to figure out how to obtain them. If anyone has figured it out though. I'd be grateful.
 
Man, I almost cried when
Leliana began singing after our camp was ambushed by demons. The way the camera was moving around the camp showing each party member's reaction to what just happened, sort of gives you the idea that the journey is taking its toll on your party. It was beautiful.
 
http://social.bioware.com/project/469/

This puts a raven in your camp and outside Flemeth's house that gives you potions that refund all your stat and talent points... even works on companions! I was able to salvage my mage and his party with this, thank god. It's awesome just for the fact that it gives you more party options too. I hated being forced to take Wynne the boring-ass old lady all the time, and now I have Leliana (badass) in my party (melee specialized now instead of absolutely useless archery).

Something like this really needed to be in the game from the start. :p Especially when so many spell descriptions are just outright wrong (and *all* of them are vague). For example, chain lightning says "friendly fire possible" when, in fact, it never hits your own party! Then there's the whole issue of Bioware choosing all this useless shit for your party members for you when they join, which they have actually *defended* on their forums, saying they made it to "fit their backgrounds". Excuse me, but sacrificing gameplay for a little unneeded fluff? Screw you.
 
Man, I almost cried when
Leliana began singing after our camp was ambushed by demons. The way the camera was moving around the camp showing each party member's reaction to what just happened, sort of gives you the idea that the journey is taking its toll on your party. It was beautiful.

I never got that scene in my playthrough :( Got a link to a vid of it or something?

Edit: Found it, I was thoroughly wow'ed by its crappiness.

Honestly, it's just a straight-up recording of the main theme, it doesn't at all sounds like Leliana singing and it's extremely poorly 'synced' to her character IMO.

I do agree the song itself is beautiful, but it doesn't fit the character at all, sounds nothing like her.
 
Yes, it was poorly synced and sounded nothing like her but I still almost teared up just from the timing of it and the way was played.

Bioware could've done some amazing things had they even bothered with proper facial animations.
 
Learn how to read people. I've never lost more than a couple points at once with any character, and my main three dudes are all at 100%. You just gotta know what they want.

Also, that Orzammar boss fight, with the golems... HARDEST ****ING BOSS IVE EVER PLAYED.

That's probably because your character has high charisma persuasion.....

Lol, I can usually read PEOPLE, the retarded dialogue feels like filling out a test question. And sometimes I want to play the game my own damn way. The one part where I lost all those points was when I.....

Chose to "rescue" the child, meeting the desire demon, so my mage could get blood magic perk. Lost 10 with allister, 8 or so with Sten, and then when I get back to the camp, lost another 25 with Allister. Ended up reloading before camp, waiting until I had higher persuasion & charisma, and only lost another 10 this time instead.

I thought that boss fight was easy....
Used healing spells on the friendly Golems, freezing spells to kite, and slowly whethered them down.

Now my mages have that crushing cage & shield bubble thing, which makes it that much easier to remove the most powerful enemies from fights.

Edit: On the way to the urn....
Just fought that massive dragon, that was a hard fight. Ice spells are very useful here.
 
I kind of wish you could continue to play after the game ends. "Walk the Earth" and what not.
 
Chose to "rescue" the child, meeting the desire demon, so my mage could get blood magic perk. Lost 10 with allister, 8 or so with Sten, and then when I get back to the camp, lost another 25 with Allister. Ended up reloading before camp, waiting until I had higher persuasion & charisma, and only lost another 10 this time instead.

You mean you went to the circle of magi and got all the mages and lyrium to go into the fade to fight the demon? Or you went and fought the demon right away in the castle, which they specifically told you would kill the kid?
 
Out of interest, what kind of loading times are you guys getting during the game ? I've had quite a few load screens take 5 ~ 10mins to load in some instances, while the same area transitions are taking 30 seconds to a minute on other playthroughs (the mage's tower and other areas in the prologue, for those interested).
 
Out of interest, what kind of loading times are you guys getting during the game ? I've had quite a few load screens take 5 ~ 10mins to load in some instances, while the same area transitions are taking 30 seconds to a minute on other playthroughs (the mage's tower and other areas in the prologue, for those interested).

my load time for a level is anywhere from 30-45 seconds. the transitions are around 15-20 seconds but in the game when its raining my framerate drops to almost 10-15 and its really annoying. i tried turning everything off and it still didn't help because you can't turn weather effects off! other than that this game shines and is a blast to play. i put only 6 hrs in but i have barely touched WoW because of it
 
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